Google has announced some big AI-led initiatives for India. One of the highlights of this $15 billion, five-year investment is the construction of new undersea cable routes linking India with multiple global destinations to support the expansion of AI infrastructure in the country. The sub-sea fibre expansion is part of Google’s America-India Connect initiative and broader AI infrastructure commitment in India.
Speaking at a Google event in Delhi, CEO Sundar Pichai said the company is launching the India-America Connect initiative, under which it will build new sub-sea cable routes to increase AI connectivity between India and the US.
“Today, we are announcing the India-America Connect Initiative, which will deliver new sub-sea cable routes to increase AI connectivity between India and the US and multiple locations across the southern hemisphere,” said Pichai. “For the opportunities this initiative creates, we should also invest in skilling, which is why we are announcing our most ambitious skilling programmes here. This includes a new Google AI Professional Certificate programme to help people master AI in their work.”
Google to build undersea cables connecting India and the US
At the centre of Google’s massive AI-led investment in India is its America-India Connect initiative. As part of this project, Google will establish a new international subsea landing station in Visakhapatnam on India’s east coast, creating an additional entry point into its global network. From there, three new subsea routes are planned to link India with Singapore, South Africa and Australia.
The company will also add four terrestrial fibre routes designed to improve connectivity between India, the United States and locations across the Southern Hemisphere.
Google says the goal of the subsea cables is to increase network capacity and reduce the risk of outages by diversifying how traffic flows between regions. The new infrastructure is expected to support rising demand for cloud computing and AI services in India, while also strengthening connections with Africa, Australia and parts of Southeast Asia.
Google to invest $15 billion in India
In addition to sea cables, the company also plans to build the physical and digital systems required to support AI services at scale, including data infrastructure and cloud capacity as part of the $15 billion investment deal.
As part of the investment, Google will expand data centre capacity and cloud infrastructure to support AI model training, deployment and storage. According to the company, the investment is meant to build long-term foundational infrastructure rather than serve as a short-term product rollout, supporting AI adoption across both the public and private sectors.
The company has also announced additional programmes tied to AI adoption and public sector capacity. These include a $30 million Global AI for Government Innovation Impact Challenge and a $30 million AI for Science Impact Challenge to support the use of AI in public services and scientific research.
Google DeepMind is also establishing partnerships with Indian government bodies and local institutions to provide access to AI for Science models and support national research priorities. In collaboration with the Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, the company is setting up a Google Center for Climate Technology focused on AI-powered climate research.
On the skilling front, Google Cloud is working with Karmayogi Bharat to provide infrastructure for the iGOT Karmayogi platform, which supports more than 20 million public servants across 800 districts. This partnership includes digitising legacy training material into searchable resources and enabling content in more than 18 Indian languages.
